Friday 29 November 2013

Great displays


(Click on the images to enlarge)

In the War Memorial Library ....... HELP! I'M A GREAT READ GET ME OUT OF HERE!



Come and spy out our Discovery Library display full of interesting books about Espionage.



Friday 22 November 2013

‘Books about Town’

The National Literacy Trust, in partnership with Wild in Art, have commissioned a series of book benches to be designed by artists to celebrate stories connected to London and promote reading for pleasure.  The open book shaped benches will be unveiled in locations across London next summer.

The Trust are inviting businesses to sponsor a BookBench in order to raise money to help tackle low literacy levels in deprived communities across the UK.  Among the benches already being created are We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and Peter Pan.


Wind in the Willows bench by artist Mik Richardson
(source: theguardian.com)

Friday 15 November 2013

Words of the Week - recent winners!

DISCOVERY LIBRARY

Constrict
Verb: To make smaller or narrower by squeezing.
chosen by Bailey 7 LC

Aggravate
Verb: To make (a disease, situation or problem) worse.
chosen by Luke 8 SH

Prosper                  
Verb: To be successful and wealthy
chosen by Harrison 7 LC

Insipid
Adjective: Dull and boring; lacking in flavour
chosen by Ben 7 ST

Archaeopteryx                  
Noun:  Oldest known bird.  Unlike modern birds, it had teeth, three claws on each wing and a long bony tail.
chosen by Gabriella 8 TN

Quare
Adjective (Irish, dialect): Remarkable or strange.
chosen by William 8 NA

Osmoregulation
Noun:  The control of the levels of water and mineral salts in the blood of a living organism.
chosen by James 8 TN

Repugnant
Adjective:  Offensive or disgusting
chosen by Fleur 7 NE

Cornucopia
Noun: A great abundance
chosen by Geoffrey 7 EV

Discommode
Verb:  To cause inconvenience or annoyance to; disturb
chosen by Jennifer Bangay (7DV)

Physiognomy
Noun:  The features of a person’s face.
chosen by Aaron 7 ML

Cantankerous
Adjective:  It means that you are bad tempered, argumentative and uncooperative.
chosen by Hannah 7 EV
                                   

WAR MEMORIAL LIBRARY

Colossal
Adjective: Very large in size
chosen by Jim 10 WH     

Ascension
Noun: The act of ascending.
chosen by Miss Bigsby (English Department)

Americanisation
Adjective: Term used to describe the how American culture is dominating the world, putting other cultures in danger of extinction.
chosen by Alecia 12 CA

Spelunker                 
Noun:  A person who explores caves, chiefly as a hobby
chosen by Leighanne 13 DN
        
Palaeontology
Noun:  The branch of biology that studies the forms of life that existed in former geologic periods, mainly by studying fossils.
chosen by Cathy Whiting (Business Manager)

Flamboyant
Adjective: Someone who is richly coloured, resplendent and elaborate in all that they do.
chosen by Matty 13 DH

Grandiose
Adjective:  Impressive or magnificent in appearance or style, in a pretentious way.
chosen by Eniola 13 DH

Phantasmagoria
Noun: A sequence of real or imaginary images constantly shifting, as seen in a dream.
chosen by Larra 13 CA
             
Distillation
Noun:  The process of purifying a liquid by boiling it and condensing its vapours.
chosen by Callum 10 MH
            
Serenity
Noun:  A state of calm and peace. 
chosen by Hawa 13 CA
                  
Palpable
Adjective:  Capable of being handled, touched or felt. 
chosen by Monique 12 PL

Transformation
Noun:  A marked changed, as in appearance or character, normally for the better
chosen by Falka 11 MW

Friday 8 November 2013

Remembrance Day – lest we forget


Remembrance Day takes place on 11 November every year in Commonwealth Countries to remember the members of the armed forces who have died since the end of the First World War. People wear remembrance poppies to show that they have not forgotten those who have died. The Discovery Library has a special Remembrance display of war time story books for you to borrow.
 
The Ravensbourne School war memorial, initially dedicated to students and staff who gave their lives in the Great War, is situated in the KS4/5 Library; known as the War Memorial Library. It was added to again after World War II. The war memorial is important to the life of the school and we mention it often.
As the War Memorial Library is for the use of KS4 and 5 students and staff only and we are aware that the KS3 students do not get to see the memorial, we are hoping to arrange a timetable of visit for the Year 7 students during Form Time this term.

Monday 4 November 2013

Celebrating Michael Morpurgo

To celebrate Michael Morpurgo’s 70th birthday, his publishers HarperCollins, will be promoting 30 of his books throughout the month of November.  Schools, libraries and bookshops will be invited to focus, week by week, on themes of Animals, War, Legends and Voyages as represented throughout his books.  The first book they will be focusing on is War Horse.


Michael Morpurgo is taking part in a one off event at the National Theatre on Sunday 10th November 2013 at 5pm to mark Remembrance Sunday called Anthems for Peace.  For more information and to book tickets visit the Anthems for Peace web page.

War Horse and other titles by Michael Morpurgo are available to borrow from the Discovery Library.